Sprint had confirmed that its commercial 5G network would be going live at the end of May and it has followed through on the timeline. The carrier has flipped the switch on its 5G network in four cities today, namely Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and Kansas City. It has now become the third major carrier in the United States to launch the next-generation mobile network for its customers.
“This is probably going to be the largest initial 5G launch in terms of coverage and footprint,” Sprint CTO John Saw claims. The carrier’s 5G footprint covers approximately 1.6 million people and 575 square miles. The carrier has put up a coverage map so its customers can see where they can get a 5G signal. That’s a good move because none of its competitors with 5G networks have done that yet.
Saw pointed out that Sprint’s antennas in 5G markets have dedicated resources for both LTE and 5G. We are not sharing spectrum. We’re not stealing bandwidth from LTE users, and you don’t see a slowdown in 5G just because LTE customers are using a lot of data,” he said.
The new LG V50 is going to be one of the first 5G smartphones available on Sprint. The carrier may eventually sell the 5G Galaxy S10 as well once its Verizon exclusivity ends.